COLUMBUS, Ohio - The No. 16 Indiana women's swimming and diving team closed out the third day of competition at the 2006 Big Ten Championships in Columbus, Ohio on Feb. 17 in fourth place with a 304-point tally. Penn State jumped into first with 372 points, while Michigan finished second with 370. Meanwhile, Minnesota headed into the final day with a third-place 339.

Meanwhile, junior Leila Vaziri garnered second team All-Big Ten honors with a runner-up finish in the 100-yard backstroke.

In the opening event of the evening, the Hoosier team of Vaziri, freshman Abby Cooper, freshman Allison Kay and junior Annica Lofstedt snared fourth-place in the 400-yard medley relay. The time of 3:41.75 not only eclipsed the B-cut threshold, it became the third-fastest time in program history. Additionally, Vaziri's 100-yard backstroke leadoff leg of 54.24 improved her own automatic qualifying time set in the morning prelims. The Hoosiers dropped to fourth at the end of the race with 199 points behind Penn State's third-place tally of 200. Michigan led with 233 points.

In the 400-yard IM, senior Kristen Bradley won the consolation heat with a time of 4:17.15 for ninth overall that improved her provisional time in the event. Meanwhile, junior Susanna Ernst cleared the B-cut standard with a 13th-place personal-best time of 4:22.65. At the end of the event, the Hoosiers remained in fourth place with 212 points, while Michigan held onto first with a 262-point tally.

In the 100-yard butterfly, junior Annica Lofstedt, who broke the school record in the event during prelims, took fifth place with a 54.72. Meanwhile, freshman Allison Kay claimed 11th place with a 55.43. The Indiana swim team stayed in fourth with 232 points, while Michigan built its first-place total to 305.

In the 200-yard freestyle, junior Clarissa Wentworth touched first in the consolation heat for ninth place overall with a personal-best time of 1:48.48. Notably, that effort moved her into third-place all-time in school history in the event.

In the 100-yard breaststroke, Cooper placed fifth in a B-cut time of 1:03.72. That effort improved her fourth-fastest time in school history. Amazingly, freshman Sarah Stockwell posted a blazing B-cut time of 1:03.49 to move into second-place all-time in Indiana history. She came just .2 seconds of breaking Greer McGettrick's school standard set in 2004. The Hoosiers still stood in fourth after the event with 264 points. Meanwhile, defending Big Ten Champion Penn State (327 points) continued to track down Michigan (332 points). Minnesota held third with 297 points.

In the 100-yard backstroke, Vaziri narrowly missed defending her conference crown in the event. She touched the wall in a runner-up 54.43 to claim second team All-Big Ten honors. That performance could not overcome Penn State senior Sarah Haupt's winning effort of 54.04. Incredibly, the Nittany Lions claimed top team honors for the initial time of the meet after being disqualified in their first relay. PSU took the lead with 372 points, while Michigan slipped to second with 356 points. Minnesota held a strong third place with 322 points, while Indiana continued its fourth-place showing with 281 points.

In the three-meter competition, junior Lindsay Weigle picked up fifth place with a 329.50 tally. Meanwhile, sophomore Jade Summerlin took 12th with a 276.80 and classmate Christina Loukas placed 13th with a 266.00 in earlier prelim action.

Next up, the Hoosiers close out the Big Ten Championships with the final day of competition on Feb. 18. The following events are slated for the last day: 200-yard backstroke, 100-yard freestyle, 200-yard breaststroke, 200-yard butterfly, 1,650-yard freestyle, 400-yard freestyle relay and platform diving.